Who's the Fool Now?
by Naoto Tatsumi
Summary: Canada's tired of being on the receiving end of Alfred's cruel April fools day pranks every year, so he decides he'll go to any lengths to one-up him this year... Even if that means recruiting Prussia to help him with the planning. fake! Snapped!Canada, also mildly a cherry syrup parody?
1. Prologue

Prologue

A frantically ringing doorbell awoke the nation from what he thought was a pretty good dream. Practically falling out of bed, he grabbed a pair of pants and rushed downstairs to see who thought it was ok to terrorize his doorbell at 1am. "A-Al? What're you—"

The older nation practically fell on top of him, half-stumbling through the doorway. "H-hey Mattie... I don't," (He stifled a cough) "Feel so well..."

"Huh? Alfred, we're nations! We can't get sick!" Canada pulled his brother to his feet.

"I know, but really dude, I just..." He allowed himself to cough this time, and much to Matthew's terror, spit up a bit of blood.

"O-oh my god, Al, w-we gotta get you to a doctor or something!" Panic suddenly filled Matthews face as Alfred simply stared at his hand where he had caught the blood. He looked up at Matt, who for the first time noted that not only was he kind of pale, but his eyes were... Off. At first he thought it was somehow the light, but then he remembered his brothers eyes were a very deep shade of blue. So, there was no way the lighting could make his eyes look _red_. "A-Al... Y-your eyes..." He stumbled back a bit, confusion and fear beginning to mix with the tiredness of being dragged out of bed by his doorbell. What was happening to his brother? America just kind of stood there for a minute, gazing at Canada with a rather blank look on his face.

"I'm... Kinda hungry..." The blank look on his face turned to a frightening glare as he began to approach his twin in a way that could only be described as shambling. Immediately, Matthews mind raced back to the zombie movie America had made them watch together just a few days before, and though it was a ridiculous idea, the terror in his mind pushed out all logical reasoning and he immediately concluded his brother had suddenly become one of the walking dead. He tried to run, but Alfred was both bigger and stronger than him and easily pinned him down.

"A-Al? Wh-what're you doing?" The American was hovering over him holding down his hands, slowly inching his head closer to Canadas neck. Matthew squeezed his eyes shut, turning his head away in some vain attempt to make what was coming seem more like a dream, which is what he was slowly trying to convince himself of.

Then he felt America start biting at his ear. The action not only stirred Matthew's natural instincts to start pointlessly struggling, but he also couldn't help but blush a bit. "Al, stop! Don't do this!"

"Do you know what today is, Mattie?" America whispered in Canadas ear, mere centimeters away, and Canada could feel his brother's breath on his neck.

"W-what?"

"It's April first~" He practically sang the last line, but the creepy tone in his voice was still there. Matthew slowly opened his eyes to see Alfred grinning down at him mischievously, previous craziness all but gone. They stared at each other for a few minutes before Matthew finally pieced everything together.

"You... You HOSER!" He pushed the other nation off of him, Alfred rolling off to his side before laying flat on his back, collapsed into a laughing fit.

"YOU SHOULD'VE SEEN YOUR FACE!" He roared, tears coming to his eyes.

"NOT. FUNNY. AL." Matthew stood, crossing his arms in front of his chest and glaring down at Alfred, who was still rolling around on the floor. He attempted holding back the urge to kick him in the ribcage... And ended up kicking him in the ribcage. He held back, though. He kind of felt like just stepping on him, but no matter how much of an ass his brother was, he couldn't really hurt him.

However, Matthew was pretty sure the somewhat feeble kick had done nothing but make him laugh even harder. When Alfred finally started to calm down, he sat up and rubbed the tears from his eyes. "Man, a pair of contacts and some fake blood and you go crazy! This was brilliant!" He straightened up a bit and, striking a bit of a pose, he continued, "Well, I guess that's a win for me this year, huh?"

"Well, I can say for sure now that there's no way I'm going to beat that..." Matthew was still mad, but he wasn't stupid. He knew there was nothing he could do to top that, especially since he had all but forgotten the date until about 5 minutes ago.

"AHA! So you admit defeat!" Alfred pumped his fist in the air, grinning characteristically. Matthew sighed, "Y'know, I'm gonna get you back next year. And it's gonna be way worse."  
"HA, like you can beat that!"

"I will! It's get you so much worse! It'll be... Ten times worse! And you'll fall right for it!"

"Sure you will, bro. I always win!"

* * *

_Author's Notes_: I've actually had most of this written for forever, so I'm considering spamming most of the story up tonight. Hope you guys enjoy this one, I had tons of fun writing it.

Also, I know this is like the forth multi-chapter story I'm working on right now. Don't worry! I will not neglect Identical, or 2p, and I will finish Dare or Dare very soon! I promise! .


	2. Setup Part 1

Title: Who's the fool now

Pairings/Characters: AmeCan(?)

Warnings: Human names used, (fake)Snapped!Canada, (fake)blood, and very cruel panks.

The Setup

Part 1

It was March 10th already, and Matthew just knew he had to think of something. He was tired of being bested, and he was going to wreck Alfreds winning streak this year. Whatever he did, it had to be BIG.

The only problem; He had no idea what exactly was big enough. He had two main issues; the joke was either to obvious, or it was too plain. The first was a major problem, seeing as how if Alfred realized it was a joke, it just wouldn't work. The second was just as bad, because he needed something that would really pop, something unique and... BIG.

He sprawled across his bed, Kumajiro next to him. "Who?" The tiny bear murmured, nudging him in the side. Sighing, he sat up and patted the confused creature on the head. "Where's Gilbird? I haven't seen him in forever..." The bear mumbled, stretching out across the bed.

The bear's stray thoughts lit a light bulb in Matthew's head, and he jumped up and rushed for the phone.

"Hello, the awesome Prussia speaking?" Matthew sighed. For a moment, he was afraid no one was going to answer.

"Gil? Can I ask you a favor?"

"Huh? Mattie, izzat you?" the Prussian laughed his signature laugh before continuing, "It's been a while, dude! Whaddaya need?"

"Well, it's kind of a long story..."

~o~0~o~

"Hmmm... So it's payback you want?" Gilbert chuckled, "You never struck me as the vengeful type."

"Well, it's been going on so long... I just want to beat him for once!"

The Prussian had ended up flying down to Canada to speak directly with him, as the phone conversation was getting 'annoying'. Matthew had explained the years of torture he'd had to endure every year on April 1st, how the two had decided to keep up a yearly tradition of competing to see who could pull the best prank. So far, Matthew had won a grand total of one time; That being when he had locked Alfred in his room after having him watch a full marathon of horror movies, with walkie talkies lining the walls as he made ghost noises into different ones at different times. Alfred didn't sleep at all, and for the next month he refused to come back over because he knew the ghosts were 'going to eat him' (even though Matthew had told him the next day that it was in fact him making the noises). Every year since, though, Alfred would beat him to the punch with an incredibly elaborate (and often cruel) practical joke.

"So, you've already used horror movies, ja? We don't want to reuse an idea, that's just no fun... So what can we do...?" Gilbert leaned back on his chair, eyes closed in thought with his chin resting on his hands. Matthew leaned back as well, also trying to think. Silence filled the room for a few moments before anyone spoke again.

"...Do you know what 'yandere' means?" Gilbert broke the silence, pulling Matthew out of his trance-like thought.

"Yandere? Never heard of it..."

"Kiku was telling me about it... But anyways, I think I might have an idea," He grinned a devilish grin, and Matthew could tell that he was going to best his brother for once.

* * *

_Author's Notes_: Short chapter is short =\ Well, technically, it is only part 1/2 os the setup. Anyways, yeah, enjoy xD


	3. Setup Part 2

The Setup  
Part 2

It had taken quite a bit to set up, but it was all done, and the next day was March 31sth.

"So everyone knows exactly what they're doing?" Matthew muttered nervously. He and Prussia were sitting in his living room, going over everything for the eight-hundredth time.

"Don't worry! Everything is going to be perfect! Francis will be here tomorrow morning, and Arthur assured me he knows everything that needs to be done."

"I still can't believe we got them in on this too..."

"Well, who wouldn't want to be part in pranking Alfred, of all people? Everyone wants to get back him for something!"

Matthew smiled sheepishly, "I'm just nervous... So much of this rests on me, what if I mess up?"

"I've seen you act, you'll be fine!" Checking his watch, Gilbert snickered a bit, "Nine o'clock... Arthur should be calling him now!"

"I hope this all works out..." Matthew shifted a bit in his seat. Everything was going to start tomorrow night, at 11:45.

They had planned every detail, everything that could go wrong. They'd pulled several all-nighters just brainstorming, not to mention all the phone calls to Francis and Arthur, trying to convince them to take part in their scheme.

First, they made sure Alfred was constantly busy, between 'last-minute political relations meetings' with Matthew and nights out with Arthur. If he remembered the date or realized it was nearing April 1st, everything would have been for nothing. Second, they had to make sure he was somewhere in the general area of Matthews house, preferably about 20 minutes away. Third, once everything started, it could NOT stop. So far, everything had been running pretty smoothly. Alfred had literally no time to plan any pranks over the last two weeks (they prayed he hadn't planned something much father ahead of time, but it so far seemed like he hadn't), and he didn't even seem to notice that the dreaded first of April was approaching.

Matthew went over the plan one last time in his head before the phone rang, snapping him back to reality. Glancing at Prussia who nodded reassuringly, he answered, "Hello?"

"I just dropped him off at his hotel room. Told him I was going to your house to speak with you about some business. He looked exhausted, said he was going straight to bed. I'll be there in about 15 minutes. Is everything ready?"

"Don't worry, we're all good. Papa is already here. Now we're just waiting for you."

"Good, see you soon."

"See you soon..."

"One last thing, Matthew."

"Yes?"

"I've said it before, I know, but this is idea... It's bloody _genius_."

~o~0~o~

Alfred trudged into his hotel room, flung off his boots and coat and went straight for the bed. He'd been incredibly busy over the past month (much to his shock), and he was starting to reach his limit. Flopping down face first, he briefly pondered turning on the TV just for a bit of noise before deciding the remote was too far from his reach to really bother.

He wasn't exactly sure when he had dozed off, but when he opened his eyes again the clock read 11:40. At first, he wondered just what the hell had stirred him from his much-needed sleep, but then he heard the ring of his cell phone. Much to his dismay, he crawled out of bed and grabbed the obnoxiously ringing object (why the hell had he chosen 'America, Fuck Yeah' as his ring tone...?), flipping it open to look at the ID.

"Prussia?" He didn't bother hiding the annoyance in his voice, yet alone the obnoxious yawn that followed.

"Ja, hi there, dude," He voice shook a bit, which kinda threw Al. Gil always sounded ridiculously confident, but now he sounded almost... Scared. "Um... Hey, can you come over to Matthew's place?"

"Huh? Matt's place? Why?" The tone of the Prussians voice was starting to scare Alfred, which woke him up somewhat. He sounded really serious, and that was rather worrying.

"Well, I was over here hanging out, y'know with the conference coming up and everything. We planned on me staying over here for the next couple days so I wouldn't have to come all the way up from my place and... Well, anyways, England shows up. He says he wants to talk with Matthew about some important stuff, so they go into Matt's office for about ten minutes before the doorbell rings again. This time, it was France, who apparently found out England was here, God knows how, and decided he had a bone to pick with him. And I mean, you know how those two are, ja? They started getting into it like they always do, poor Matthew right in between them. It was kinda weirding me out, though, cause you know how he normally tries to break them up, calm them down? Well, he wasn't doing that this time. He was just standing there with this blank look on his face. And then he just... Well..."

There was a pause, and neither country spoke for what felt like hours. "Gil... He just... What?"

"He just... _Snapped_."

* * *

_Author's Notes_: The fun stuff is coming up! YAY! w


	4. Execution Part 1

The Execution

Part 1

Alfred had told Prussia he'd be there in 15 minutes, despite the 20-minute drive. Jumping off of the bed, he silently thanked himself for sprawling out still completely clothed.

Apparently, Matthew had jumped on top of Francis and had literally started strangling him, to the point where Arthur had to pull him off and restrain him to get him to stop. As hard as it was to image, he was the second largest nation in the world, so there had to be some sort of brute strength behind that. As he pulled into the drive of the Canadians home, he made note of the time; 12:01. Well, he'd met his time goal, despite the several broken traffic laws. Pulling in, he also noted that Arthur's car was parked up the driveway, along with two others (who he could only assume were Francis's and Gilbert's, since he didn't really know their vehicles.) As he stepped out of the car, though, he noticed something rather... Strange. There didn't seem to be a single light on in the entire house. Momentarily, he though that Gilbert might have just been pulling his leg, that they were really all fast asleep by now, but then he remembered the scared tone of his voice and, without another thought, rang the doorbell.

He stood there, in silence, for what felt like an eternity. Impatiently, he rang the doorbell again, this time keeping it pressed in a little longer to drag out the obnoxious ringing sound.

Standing outside in the cold Canadian air was a great way to wake up just about anybody, that's for sure.

After another few minutes, just as he was about to ring again, the door swung open almost violently to reveal Matthew. There was a brief flash of anger in his eyes that seemed to melt away as he saw who it was.

"Al?" He said sweetly, smiling, "What're you doing here?"

Alfred was taken aback by his brother's strange behavior, but tried not to show it on his face. "Uh, I'm just, y'know, stopping by to check in on you..." He laughed nervously. For whatever reason, he was feeling very threatened, which was absurd; this was Matthew they were talking about. He was quiet, timid, and aggravatingly passive-aggressive- Definitely not someone who inspired fear just at a glance.

Matthew stepped aside, waving the American in, "Come on in, you'll get sick standing out there." Alfred trotted in obediently, attempting to ignore the eerie blackness of the house.

"Ah, sorry Matt, were you asleep? It's so dark in here..." He glanced behind him, knowing full well that Matthew would never go to bed in a pair of jeans and his favorite red hoodie, what he was wearing now.

"No, I think there have just been... Some problems with the wiring." He smiled again, closing the door. There was a distinctive 'click' sound, which Alfred immediately identified as the door locking.

_It's fine, that door locks from the inside anyways. If I really need to get out, I'm sure there's a way to unlock it from in here without the key... _

Gah, what the hell was he thinking? He wouldn't have to 'escape' from Matthew's house! He smacked himself on the forehead, shaking his head in an attempt to clear out the thoughts.

"Um... You okay, Al?" He glanced up to look at Matthew, who was now standing directly beside him. Outwardly, he looked rather calm, like the same usual Matthew. But no matter what he did, Alfred couldn't shake this feeling that something was _wrong_ with him.

"Y-yeah. Yeah, I'm fine. Um... Where's everyone else?"

"Oh?"

"Um... Everyone else?"

"What makes you think I'm not home alone?" He smiled, but it wasn't a real smile. Actually, it was more threatening than anything else.

"I... I saw the cars, in the driveway. I recognized Arthur's, but not the other two..." Laughing nervously, me motioned back toward the door, even taking a step closer to it. "Hey, Matt, you haven't been hanging around with Russia again, have you?" The overall tone of innocent intimidation coming from his brother was reminding him of a certain enemy nation of his.

"Ivan? Nope, haven't seen him in a while..." Since Alfred had taken a step back, he was now about a foot behind Matthew, who hadn't even bothered to turn around to look when he replied. Something about the way he was standing, back to Alfred, hands folded neatly behind his back, just added to the overall creep-factor he was exuding.

"Oh, uh... Prussia is here too, right? You never answered me, where is everyone else?"

Suddenly, Matthew whipped around, a terrifyingly dark look taking over his face, "How did you know?"

Much to his own displeasure, a tiny squeak emanated from Alfred as he jumped a bit, scared by the sudden movement. He stumbled over his words for a second before spitting out a somewhat comprehendible sentence: "I, uh, car. License plate. I-it said awesome... Or something. I think. I-I just kinda figured... "

Matthew's eyes narrowed, the dark look on his face never leaving, as he seemed to scan Alfred. After a moment, though, he smiled and wheeled back around, "Oh, I guess that makes sense... I didn't notice that. That sounds like Gil, though~" He started off toward the kitchen, leaving Alfred standing dumbfounded in the entryway.

After a moment, he looked over his shoulder, "You're hungry, right? Follow me, I'll make you something."

Alfred was reluctant to follow, especially after whatever the hell he just witnessed, but he couldn't just leave without knowing where the others were and if they were even okay. Slowly, he trailed behind his brother, realizing with every step just why Gilbert sounded so terrified on the phone. Whatever had happened to Matthew had made him suddenly very imposing. Even Alfred, self-proclaimed hero and strongest man on earth, felt like Matthew could wheel around and break him two if he felt like it.

Which was absurd, of course, considering it was Matthew being discussed.

Alfred tried to keep reminding himself of that, but that suddenly seemed much less comforting. When they finally reached the kitchen, Matthew calmly went about pulling out various ingredients from the cupboards and fridge. Alfred watched dumbly for a moment before Matthew nonchalantly waved him towards the table. Obediently, Alfred wandered over to the table, choosing a seat were he was still facing the blonde scurrying around the kitchen. Alfred didn't feel safe having his back to him.

Thankfully, though it was dark, Alfred's eyes had adjusted enough where he could see the kitchen relatively well, and the small window above the sink let in enough moonlight to be a little assistance. Never letting his eyes leave Mathew, Alfred sat uncomfortably on the edge of his seat. He'd chosen the chair closest to the stairs, the one with the best view of the kitchen, also thinking that he could probably get upstairs and lock a door behind him faster then Matthew could if need be. Matthew kept himself busy, though. No more sudden movements, or outbursts, thankfully. As he watched him through the blackness, he slowly began to recognize the recipe he was preparing as pancakes, what he usually made when Alfred came to visit.

After a moment of nothing but scraping noises from Matthew trailing here and there in the kitchen, Alfred began to detect another noise. Were those footsteps? Yes, muffled footsteps, frantic and panicked. It seemed t be coming from upstairs somewhere, and it was so faint Alfred had to really concentrate to hear it. Matthew apparently heard it too, as he paused in the middle of stirring and let his eyes trail up the stairs. Their eyes met for a brief second before Matthew continued on with his task, now humming softly but obtrusively. Was he trying to cover up the sound?

Alfred did his best to act like he hadn't heard it, keeping his eyes fixed on Matthew and his cooking. After a few more minutes, as the smell of pancakes began to fill the air, Alfred stood up as normally as he could and stretched, trying to come off as unfazed.

"I gotta pee. Be right back." He turned and headed up the stairs, hoping that Matthew wouldn't try interfering. Thankfully, he got all the way upstairs, and Matthew hadn't said a word to him. Loudly, he stomped his way into the bathroom, then shut the door with him still standing on the outside. Then, as quietly as he could, he crept farther down the hall and listened for the noise again. Even listening as hard as he could, Alfred couldn't make out the noises again, so he instead just cracked open the first door he could find.

It was unbelievably dark inside, and because of that, it was hard to identify exactly which room he was in. He'd been in Matthew's house a lot over the years, and he did know it pretty well, but he really was only able to identify the bathroom in this darkness. Sliding inside, he shut the door behind him as silently as possible and felt around the wall for the light switch. He cringed back when a light actually flickered on, shielding his eyes with his hands.

So much for wiring issues.

Slowly, he allowed his eyes to adjust and scanned the room. It was Matthew's office, as tidy and organized as ever, with a nice, large oak desk sitting in the back of the room and a few bookshelves and filing cabinets against the walls. Everything seemed pretty normal, at first, so Alfred began turning to leave- But that's when something caught his eye. The closet, which was on the adjacent wall to the door he'd come in through, was open slightly. Sure, this was nothing too special, but the light from the room leaked passed the open door and highlighted something very notable- A face.

* * *

_Author's Notes_: WOW this part is so much longer than the others lol And it's so much more drama-ey! God, it's fun wirting all this creepy stuff. Is there something wrong with me? xD


	5. Execution Part 2

Part 2

Slumped in the back of the closet, eyes closed, was Francis. Alfred panicked, rushing toward the door and pulling it open. Kneeling down, he looked over the Frenchman. He didn't look hurt, at least not anywhere that Alfred could see, so he gingerly shook him by his shoulder.

"France? Francis? You awake?" He whispered, trying to be conscious of his volume. Francis stirred a bit, eyes cracking open. He looked foggy and disoriented.

"A-Alfred…? Where are we?" He sat up slowly, hand immediately going for his throat. As he pushed aside his collar, Alfred took notice of dark bruises forming, as if he'd been strangled.

"We're, uh, at Mattie's. You don't remember?"

Francis merely shook his head slowly, gently rubbing the bruises.

"Look, Francis, I think there's something wrong with Matthew. We have to find Gilbert and Arthur, I'm pretty sure they're somewhere around here too, but we have to be quiet about it. And then… We should probably all get out of here." He tried keeping his voice steady and calm, not wanting to alarm Francis, but as soon as 'something is wrong with Matthew' cam out, the Frenchman looked suddenly alarmed.

"Wrong with him? What do you mean? Is he hurt?" He began mildly panicking before Alfred shook his head and gingerly took the other man by the shoulders, looking straight as his eyes.

"No, he's not hurt, but I'm afraid Gilbert or Arthur might be. Why don't you look around up here while I go back down and talk to him, okay?"

Still looking very confused, Francis stared back at him blankly for a moment before nodding. "A-alright… I still don't get what you're saying, but it's rare to see you this serious… Something must be happening, so I'll do as you say."

Alfred helped Francis stand, leading him back to the door. "Alright, I have to shut this light off before we open the door. It's dark out there, but even if you can, don't turn on any of the lights, okay?" Francis opened his mouth to ask why, but Alfred stopped him before he could, "Just do it, alright?"

Once again, Francis nodded solemnly. Alfred clicked off the light again and they were plunged into darkness. Giving his eyes a moment to readjust, he opened the door as quietly as he could. He motioned for Francis to go the other direction, down the hall, and he complied, disappearing into the darkness just a few feet away. Alfred quietly made his way back to the bathroom, where he tiptoed inside before making a scene of flushing the toilet, running the water in the sink for a moment, then opening the door and going back downstairs.

Matthew didn't even turn to look at him as he noisily reentered the dining room, sitting himself down back at the end of the table. Much to his surprise, there was already a stack of pancakes sitting there, ready for him. Matthew was still in the kitchen, presumably cleaning up.

"Oh, thanks bro. These look good, as usual." Alfred let out a carefree laugh that shocked even him, as he felt anything but carefree right now.

As he examined the food in front of him, something was… Off. Just like how Matthew had been since he'd arrived. Maybe it was just the light, but the maple syrup on them looked strangely red. Gulping, he tried pushing all of the worst-case scenarios in his head out. Still, he couldn't shake the thoughts, and decided he was going to avoid eating these at all costs.

"Hey, Matt, did you do something different with the syrup…?" Alfred looked up from his plate and jumped, at Matthew was now sitting directly across the table from him. When he'd gotten there, Alfred was unsure, but he'd done it with disturbing amounts of stealth.

"I'm glad you noticed~ Aren't you gonna try some?" Matthew smiled, leaning his elbows on the table as he rested his chin in his palms. His eyes were half lidded, and he was smiling in a disturbingly calm way, and with the moonlight reflecting off his face like it was, he looked positively terrifying.

Unable to avoid the meal now, Alfred swallowed hard and looked down at his plate. Picking up his fork slowly, he glanced back up at Matthew. He hadn't moved, and his expression was the exact same.

Alfred wrenched his eyes back to the food as he cut off a small bite and stabbed it with his fork. Reluctantly, he raised it to eye level, examining it fully. Though he'd gone for a corner that hadn't exactly been doused in syrup, there was still a notable amount on it. And yes, to his horror, it was red. Though he silently prayed it was just cherry, too much seemed to be weighing against him at the moment.

"…Well?" Matthew's smile momentarily faltered, his eyes growing dark as the corners of his mouth curled downward. Overcome with another bolt of intimidation, Alfred quickly shoved the bite into his mouth.

* * *

_Author's Notes_: ANOTHER CLIFFHANGER! I don't normally write cliffhanger endings, but it's just too fun with this story. And I'm glad so many of you like this! I think it's more popular right now than Identical... xD I don't mind that, though, cause this story is just so much fun to write~ Mostly because insane Matthew. I get to write lots of him next chapter w


	6. Execution Part 3

*_Warning, this part gets a bit naughty near the end ;3 Nothing more than pg-13, but figured I've give you a fair warning, since I didn't actually put a warning for any sexual themes in the first part~_

Part 3

The taste was, at first, pleasant. It was sweet, much to Alfred's relief. His first thought had been to swallow without chewing at all, but hope had returned to him that it was, in fact, just cherry syrup, and he began chewing a bit.

A moment later, though, he realized the sweetness wasn't the only taste present. There was another flavor, sharp and foreign, that made him regret chewing at all. It took him a moment to identify it, but when he did, fear gripped his stomach again as he forced himself to swallow.

It tasted metallic, coppery would probably be the best way to describe it. He felt his stomach lurch a bit as he forced himself to keep his food down.

"How did it come out? It tasted just awful when I started out, but I added some stuff to make it a bit sweeter… Did it help at all?"

Wide-eyed, Alfred looked up at his twin, who was now resting his chin on just his left palm. His right hand was occupied twirling around what looked to be a medium-sized butchers knife. Where that had came from, Alfred had no idea, but at the moment he was much more concerned with Matthew's face.

His expression was twisted, eyes lazily half-lidded with a sadistic grin spread across his lips. His focus seemed to be entirely on the glinting metal in his hand as he it twirled around and around in barely defined patterns. When Alfred didn't respond for a moment, Matthew glanced over to him.

"Hm… Suddenly feel shy, Al? That's not like you." He didn't stop messing with the knife as he spoke.

Alfred finally collected himself a bit, pushing the plate away and standing, "Y-you didn't… M-Matt, you…"

Matthew frowned a bit as the plate was pushed away, sitting up a bit as he finally let the hand with the knife rest against the table. "So you don't like it? Shoot… I always knew you liked England more, I probably should have started you out with him…"

Alfred's mind raced. Did that mean… That was Gilbert? Had he just…?

He felt the heaving start up again and he had to steady himself with the table, his other hand clutching his stomach as he forced himself not to be sick. His imagination got the best of him as his mind raced with everything from what had happened before he'd gotten there to what could happen if he stayed there any longer. He suddenly felt dizzy, and when had it gotten so hot in here?

"Al? You okay?" Alfred's head shot up to meet Matthew's eyes. Was that a genuine look of concern? As a matter of fact, the malicious aura he'd been giving off was suddenly gone, almost as if he'd completely gone back to normal.

Violently, Alfred shook his head, trying to clear up his thoughts. Closing his eyes, he took a few deep breaths. "Y-yeah. Fine." What was going on here? Matthew now seemed totally like his normal self.

"You sure…?"

Alfred swallowed, nodding slowly. He opened his eyes, turning back towards Matthew as he smiled softly. Maybe he was just losing it? Yeah… Matthew couldn't do anything like…

His thoughts interrupted themselves as he felt a presence directly next to him, far too close for comfort. He turned his gaze from where Matthew had been just a moment earlier to where he was now- Pressed against Alfred's side. Before he could react, or even process the new turn of events, he felt arms snaking around his own. Matthew had taken hold of Alfred's left arm and was now hugging it close to his own body, which was pressing closer and closer to Alfred's side.

Matthew lifted up his chin and rested it on Alfred's shoulder, their faces now just centimeters apart. "You know, Al, I really worry about you sometimes… You need to start watching your health, eh?" He cast a side glance at the table, where the barely-touched pancakes sat, "Hmmm… Though I guess I'm not helping too much there, am I? All those sweets are going to start showing soon."

One of Matthew's arms slid from around Alfred's and he felt a light jabbing at his side. As whatever had poked him had a clear and definite point, Alfred remembered the knife and jumped back, stumbling over the chair behind him a bit. He barely managed to steady himself as he fell backwards, landing sort of awkwardly on the chair.

Matthew didn't miss a beat as he climbed on top of the fallen man, straddling him against the chair and effectively pinning him. Alfred realized he was right about what had been poking him as Matthew raised the knife to eye level again. Alfred pressed himself farther back against the chair as he saw the tool, his eyes widening in fear.

"Al, are you… Scared of me?" He held the knife by the handle and the tip of the blade, one finger pressed against each end. It hovered horizontally in front of his face, hiding everything but his eyes. His head tilted slightly downward, he peered at Alfred over the glinting metal, some sort of mixture of sadness and pure innocence in his eyes, "You know, I would never hurt _you_…"

Alfred gulped, almost feeling bad for his brother when he looked this sad. The feeling soon passed, though, as he remembered the events of the night, and as he looked at the knife still in Matthew's hand. "So… You'd hurt Gilbert, or Arthur…?"

He dropped his hands, the knife moving to reveal a now-widening smirk as a bone-chilling chuckle escaped the Canadian. Leaning in, he brought his face right up to Alfred's, "What if I already had, eh?"

He straightened he back up again and, making a big deal of it, swung the hand still holding the knife over the side of the chair. He released his grip and there was a clatter as the knife hit the ground.

Alfred looked him over, confused. For the first time, the thought occurred to him that he could easily overpower the smaller man now pinning him to the chair, especially since he was now totally weaponless. And even though he really didn't want to hurt Matthew, if he'd really done something to Arthur and Gilbert, he might have to.

He steeled himself to just pushing Matthew off (which wouldn't be too hard) and got ready to follow through, but before he could, he felt sudden pressure on a certain area… Downstairs.

Matthew had moved his palm to right over Alfred's crotch, gently palming the area with a devious smirk. Alfred's breath hitched as the pressure stopped and fingers moved to lightly trace the seams of his jeans from the inside of his thigh up along his crotch and up to his stomach, where a cold hand intruded under his shirt. Alfred felt his face grow red, his breathing becoming a bit heavy, "M-Matt, what the hell are you-?"

Matthew's free hand moved to Alfred's face, a finger pressing to his lips to silence him mid-sentence.

"I'm glad you came tonight, you know… I mean, I was just going to call you in the morning, but just coming over on your own… It shows that you _care_, Al." The hand under his shirt worked its way higher, brushing against a nipple and making Alfred shudder a bit, "And I'm glad that you do…Because I care about you too, Al. All of this… I did it for you, you know."

His hand slid back out from Alfred's shirt as he cupped Alfred's face with both hands, leaning in slowly until their lips were barely apart. By now, Alfred was confused and kind of horny, and had little-to-no willpower to fight back, and was fully prepared to return the kiss.

He was brought back to reality by a less-than-manly shriek from upstairs, one that sounded strikingly like Francis. He jerked he head toward the noise, Matthew pulling back slightly at the sudden motion. Sighing, Matthew's hands slid down to Alfred's shoulders as he hung his head and rested it lightly against Alfred's chest.

"Well, I guess someone's finally awake…"

Pulling himself up, Matthew stood begrudgingly and straightened up, turned on his heel. He rounded the corner as he started up the stairs, and Alfred heard the footsteps go up a few steps before stopping and coming back down. Matthew's head popped out from around the corner, looking at Alfred expectantly.

"Well? You coming?"

* * *

_Author's Notes_: Ah, Snapped!Canada is so much fun to write~~~ Especially when's he on the Yandere side . w . Oh, and really fun stuff starting next part, since the big reveal is coming up soon xD


	7. Execution Part 4

Part 4

Matthew navigated his way through the dark house quite expertly, Alfred trailing just behind him. Alfred's mind was racing, and he silently thanked the darkness as he was pretty sure he was still a little flushed. When Matthew stopped suddenly in front of one of the rooms at the end of the hall, Alfred almost crashed into him.

"Al, I remember how I said I did all of this for you?" Matthew was turned toward the door, not even facing Alfred as he spoke. It was especially dark down this hall, where there weren't any windows, but Alfred's eyes had adjusted just enough to be able to tell he was smiling rather serenely. Matthew suddenly turned to face Alfred, "I want you to see what 'all of this' is, okay?"

Reaching forward, he turned the doorknob and pushed the door open. He took a couple of steps into the room, Alfred still staying at his heels. Whatever was in this room, he knew he wouldn't like it, but if it had made Francis shriek like that… He had to know what it was.

It was pitch black in the room, to the point where it was near impossible to just see your hand in front of your face.

Matthew clicked his tongue in disappointment a few times, "Oh, how disappointing… I guess I have to tell the truth now…" There was a click as light flooded the room, and Alfred immediately raised his hand to shield his eyes. Blinking a few times, he let his eyes now adjust to the brightness as he turned to Matthew, who had his hand on the light switch. "Sorry, Al. I lied about the wiring, I guess~"

Matthew was staring passed Alfred, who turned to follow his gaze. As he turned, he noted they were in the guest bedroom, where Alfred normally stayed when he stayed over for the night. There was much, however, that was radically out of place. First off, it looked kind of like it had been rather sloppily ransacked, as a few drawers were pulled out of the dresser and clothing and various other articles were strewn around the room. Also out of place was the amount of _red _around the room. There were handprints all over the dresser, the walls, the articles around the room, the floors… Not to mention the pool of red in almost the middle of the room. Gulping, Alfred let his eyes follow the trail leading from the pool to a crumpled mass in the corner. It took him a moment to identify just what it was. Of course, from the blood leaking from it, it was obviously a body. And that was the back of a head… White hair…

Alfred felt sick once again as he stumbled back a few steps, his hand pressing over his mouth instinctively. His eyes continued to scan the room, immediately attracted by movement. In the other corner of the room, opposite the body of Gilbert, was Francis, staring like a deer in the headlights with his gaze fixed on Matthew. He was standing behind what looked to be a kitchen chair with another figure slumped in it. Alfred took in the other figure for a moment, using every ounce of his willpower to not only stay on his feet, but also not to get the hell out of the room.

It was Arthur, probably unconscious (or at least he hoped) and splattered with blood. Francis was kneeling behind him, probably trying to work at the knots keeping Arthur in the chair.

"_M-Matthieu_… Y-you…" Francis stood shakily, stepping back a bit. He never took his eyes off of the Canadian.

With each small, shaky step Francis took back, Matthew took a large, springy step toward him. By the time Francis had his back to the wall, Matthew was hovering over Arthur. Francis looked slightly relieved when attention was turned from him toward the unconscious Englishman, as Matthew kneeled down to look Arthur straight-on in the face.

He just knelt there for a moment, not moving, before reaching two fingers up to touch Arthur's throat. Closing his eyes, he seemed to stop breathing for a moment as he listened. Suddenly, another creepy smile slid across his lips as he abruptly stood, pulling his arm back.

"Oh! He's actually still alive! I was scared for a second there!" He turned to Alfred, the smile never leaving his face. Alfred realized his face had to be betraying his confusion (probably along with his mortifying terror), as Matthew returned his stare with a casual smirk and continued, "What, Al, you think I want him dead?"

Matthew quickly closed the distance between himself and Alfred, a strangely peppy bounce in his step. Alfred instinctively took a few more steps back, bumping into the wall as Matthew stops just a few inches in front of him.

Matthew raised his hand, the one he'd used to (Alfred presumed) Arthur's pulse to reveal a bit of blood staining his index and middle finder. "We already agree that this stuff tastes terrible fresh, image how bad it must be old…?"

There was a seductive look in his eyes, but his lips held fast in a playful smile, "Even so… I guess it could be a taste worth getting used to…" He brought his fingers to his lips, slowly dragging his tongue along the length of his fingers, keeping his eyes locked with Alfred's the whole while. Alfred couldn't help but admit that if it were anything else on his fingers, the action would have been hella sexy.

Alfred was taken aback, though, when Matthew got a good amount of the liquid actually on his tongue. He grimaced almost violently, scrunching his eyes closed and pulling his hand away from his face suddenly.

"Uuuugh..! God, that's rancid…!"

There was a moment of confusion from Alfred, as Matthew's entire cool-and-collected-psychopath routine just disappeared. Like before, it was like he suddenly just returned back to his usual self. The confusion was heightened, of course, when what could only be described as a gigglefit erupted from the corner.

The corner where Gilbert lay, bleeding out.

* * *

_Author's Notes_: Ah, Gilbert, you and your gigglefits giving everything away...

Hope the long wait was at least kinda-sorta worth it OTL Sorry I take forever to write stuff. I've actually been writing a lot lately, though, so maybe I'll actually get more up regularly, at least over the next couple weeks or so...? ^ ^;


	8. Reveal

The Reveal

Part 1

The laughing continued for a minute, only stopping when Gilbert had to breathe. At some point, he'd rolled onto his back, and Alfred got a good look at him. Despite the tears in his eyes and face-splitting grin, he looked _horrible_. It wasn't too hard to figure out where all the blood pooled in the center of the room was coming from, from the gaping wound in his hairline. A good portion of his usually silver hair was matted with splotches of red, and the blood trailed along various parts of his face. He also appeared to be bleeding out of his mouth, and maybe even from his ears.

Aside from a few spots on his shirt and a bit of dried red on his hands, the rest of him seemed pretty unharmed, Alfred noted with a slight sigh. At least the Prussian was alive, Alfred thought. A moment before he'd had been trying to discern whether or not the figure had been breathing. The laughing, though, had thoroughly thrown him off.

Maybe Gilbert was hysterical?

Alfred quickly glanced around the room, taking in everyone else's reactions. Matthew seemed less than concerned by the Prussian and more than concerned with getting the taste of the blood off his tongue. Francis no longer looked scared, as he was now glaring angrily at Gilbert (who has taken one look at Matthew and burst back into laughter). Arthur still appeared unconscious.

Very confused, Alfred was the first to speak up. "Uh… Gil, y-you alright…?"

At this, Gilbert let out a snort and continued giggling for a minute. It wasn't until Alfred gathered up enough courage to take a step forward that he actually received a response.

"O-oh God… Matt, I didn't even know you could make that sound… Oh god… It's just hilarious, 'cause that shit was totally made by Arthur..!"

At this, Arthur snapped upright. "Well, was that some sort of insult to my cooking? I did a fine job, blood isn't _supposed_ to tasted good, you bell!"

…Well, things just got even more confusing.

Francis's shoulders drooped as he rested his face in his palm, "Well, that went bad quickly…"

Before Alfred could put together a coherent thought, he felt a pair of arms drape around his shoulders and breath on the back of his ear. "Well, it looks like the cat's wormed its' way out of the bag, eh?"

That tone, the one that he'd had most of the evening, the one that sounded both collected and completely psychopathic, was back. Instinctively, Alfred lunged forward, trying to wrench his way out of Matthew's grip. Matthew held tight, though, continuing, "Aww, c'mon Al, you can calm down now. Nothing else to be scared of, right everyone?"

Alfred diverted his attention back to the other three men in the room. Arthur was standing now, looking unusually smug despite the annoyed look he was throwing Gilbert. Gilbert had also sat himself up, still chucking a little. He paid no mind to the looks being thrown at him from Arthur, and was instead grinning at Alfred in the most self-satisfied way possible. Francis shrugged slightly, letting a smile creep across his features. He looked just as smug as Arthur did.

"Al, do you remember what today is?" Alfred shivered slightly at the breath once again on his ear, once again trying to shrug out of Matthew's grasp. This one was allowed, though, and Alfred took the opportunity to put a small bit of distance between himself and his twin before whirling around to get a better look at him. He wasn't all that surprised when he saw the same smug, self-satisfied look that the others had on Matthew's face, as well.

Taking a minute to collect his thoughts, he looked between the other people in the room a few times before realization washed over him.

"…Wait. Wait, no. No way. You're fucking kidding me. This was _not_ all a joke."

The grins on everyone's faces widened, which a few moments before Alfred would have sworn was impossible. This indicated he'd been right.

"Wow. You guys are _sick_. Sick and twisted. And I hate you all." He paused for a minute, looking over the 'blood-soaked' room, "And I'm not helping anybody clean this up."

~o~0~o~

Alfred was true to his word. As everyone else hung around to clean up a bit, Alfred marched himself downstairs, planting himself at the dining room table to fume for a bit. Though he could definitely take a joke, everyone figured he'd need a bit of time to cool down before he'd forgive any of them.

Once they'd gotten most of the blood-goop up (some of it had started staining, despite the measures taken before), France and England excused themselves from Matthew's house. Though they'd planned on staying for a while, the daggers being glared into them from a certain American seemed to scare them off. Gilbert, though, wasn't so easily scared, especially since he'd already been planning on staying another couple of nights in Canada. His first course of action was to get all of the makeup and blood-goop off of him, and so he took off for the shower.

Matthew, though, was beginning to feel a little guilty for the whole affair. As he made his way into the dining room, Alfred immediately shot him the coldest glare the Canadian had ever seen coming from him. Uncomfortably, Matthew took a seat adjacent to Alfred, noticing that he had taken the same seat as he had earlier in the evening. There were a few minutes of awkward silence, in which Alfred's glare never let up.

Much to Matthew's surprise, Alfred was the first to break the silence, "That was quite a performance, tonight."

Another moment of silence.

"I, uh, guess you weren't too much of a fan."

Alfred shook his head slowly. "No, it was a great prank… Despite being on the receiving end."

"So…"

"So you win. This year, at least."

Despite his words, he never let up on the glare.

"So, I'm kinda confused. Are you mad at me for winning, or because it went too far?"

"Neither."

Another even longer silence.

"So… Why are you mad at me?"

For the first time since Matthew had entered the room, Alfred diverted his eyes, looking out the window. It was still late (or early, actually), so it was dark out. Combined with the light inside, it was pretty impossible to see passed the reflection of the glass, so it was pretty obvious he wasn't looking at anything in particular. Another silence fell as Alfred seemed to search for words.

"Was everything… As in _everything_… Was it just to mess with me?"

The slight color that appeared on his cheeks immediately betrayed his thoughts, and Matthew felt his own face heat up a bit as he realized what exactly was being referred to.

"O-oh… That…"

"'Oh that'? Really? Is that all you have to say about it? After all you said, after all you did… I don't mind jokes, but to go that far, I mean… Making me think you-" Cutting himself off before the color in his cheeks increased more than they already had, he let out a long, angry sigh, leaning farther down in the chair and tightening his arms folded across his chest. Trying his hardest to look away from the other man, he craned his neck as far as he could, studying the window once again. _C'mon, Alfred, it was a joke. Stop over-thinking it._

His thoughts were interrupted, though, by a rather sharp sound of wood scraping against tile floor, and he instinctively turned toward the noise. Before he could actually take in what was happening, Matthew was once again pinning him to the chair, in a now-familiar scene.

"…You're not going to finish that sentence?"

Alfred paused, his face growing even hotter than before. Matthew looked serious, and something about his eyes felt magnetic. As much as Alfred wanted to turn away again, he couldn't.

"Why should I?" He tried sounding defiant, but his voice quivered a bit at the end. He wasn't really sure if it worked.

They were like that for a good minute, just staring at each other, before Matthew spoke again. "Just because I did it during the joke doesn't mean I did it for the… Wrong reasons."

"And what's that supposed to mean?"

There was another pause before Matthew's face started inching closer, and Alfred felt every fiber of his being screaming to let what was about to happen, happen. At the last second, though, he turned away, the sudden movement making Matthew flinch back again.

"…You're not just fucking with me again, are you…?"

A small, tender smile formed across Matthew's lips. He leaned in again, but this time, since Alfred was still turned away, his lips fell to Alfred's jaw line, dusting it with kisses and soft nips, here and there. He continued down a little ways, biting on a seemingly tender spot at the base of Alfred's neck which caused his breath to catch momentarily. Satisfied with the sound, the Canadian leaned back just enough that he was looking the other in the eyes again. "I'm sorry for what I did. But I want you to know I didn't just do it for the joke—I did it because I really do like you, Al."

Alfred was now thoroughly flushed, looking at Matthew with an expression caught between skepticism and want. Smiling again, Matthew once again trailed his mouth down Alfred's neck, biting a couple of times before finding that spot again and sucking gently, earning a soft inhale and a light, breathy moan.

Finally, Alfred spoke again, "…No joke?"

Matthew laughed lightly, smiling and pressing his lips against the curve of the other's neck. "No joke. I promise."

Leaning back yet again, he tried once again for a proper kiss.

Just as their lips were centimeters away, though, they were once again interrupted by a shriek coming from upstairs. The noise made the pair jump simultaneously, and Matthew looked hurriedly from the stairs to the man beneath him. As Alfred cocked an eyebrow, Matthew climbed off of him and started toward the stairs, "I swear, this isn't part of any joke. I _swear_."

When they got upstairs, it wasn't too hard to identify the source of the noise, as it was pretty hard to miss the terrified-looking, dripping wet Prussian standing in the bathroom door, wearing nothing but a towel.

"Thisisn'thappeningthisisn'thappeningthisisn'thappening…" The albino looked from one man to the other as they just exchanged confused looks. After a minute, though, Matthew burst out laughing, realizing what he was freaking out about.

"Oh my god, Gil… Your hair…!" He keeled over a little, grasping at his stomach in a giggle fit similar to Gilberts own from earlier in the evening. The prompt made Alfred's eyes wander up to the hair in question before he, too, burst out laughing.

"Aw, man, Gil! Pink looks _great_ on you!"

Gilberts eyes narrowed at the two men keeling over in front of him. "No. Nononono. This is not funny! Mein awesome hair CAN'T be pink! What the hell was in that blood stuff, anyways?! I washed it like 5 times!"

"I guess it stains." Matthew choked out between bouts of laughter. "Good to know for future use."

"This can't be happening. WHAT DO I DO NOW?!" Gilbert stormed back into the bathroom, slamming the door behind him and only causing Alfred and Matthew to start laughing even harder.

They let themselves calm down a little (which took a few minutes, as they could still hear Gilbert freaking out through the bathroom door) before turning to one-another.

"You know, we could pick up where we left off… If you want to, that is."

Alfred grinned slyly at this, wrapping his arm around Matthew and leading him down the hall toward the master bedroom. "I'd love to. Pinky is staying in the guest room, right?"

"JONES IF I EVER HEAR YOU CALL ME THAT AGAIN I WILL STAB YOU UNTIL YOU DIE."

The threat was lost to the bedroom door slamming, and a frustrated Gilbert poked his head back out of the bathroom. He yelled after them again, not as loud as his death threat, "Hmph. You guys finally hook up, and it's right in the middle of the biggest crisis of my life. You both suck, I hope you know!"

No response.

"…Fine, I see how it is. At least I won't be the only one with oddly colored hair." Fiddling through the bathroom bag he'd packed, he dug out a small bottle of Splat neon blue hair dye. "You're not the only one who can pull April Fool's pranks! Now, where's Matt's shampoo bottle…?"

* * *

Author's Notes: WHOA GAIZ AN UPDATE. AND LOOK, IT'S THE LAST CHAPTER!

I hope you all enjoyed the story as much as I enjoyed writing it. Sorry it took so long, btw, I wrote half of this chapter, then read it back through and hated it enough to rewrite it. I hope the second time through had better results.

A new chapter of Identical will be up soon, and Dare or Dare is just about done as well. Also, I have another story started that I plan on replacing this one with . w.


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